We've been through Obamamania. Now a new phenomenon is sweeping America  Palinmania.

Even before Governor Sarah Palin of Alaska had appeared on the stage to introduce Senator John McCain, the Republican presidential nominee, the chant went up around the hall: "We want Sarah!"

A tear rolled down the cheek of a middle-aged woman volunteer who moments earlier had been barking orders to keep the exits clear.

A mother clutched the hand of her 11-year-old daughter, whose face was made up like a clown with stars and the letters P-A-L-I-N painted across her face.

Outside, queues which began six hours earlier snaked around the sports hall as more than 9,000 people filed in. Hundreds would be left outside.

They held home-made signs with slogans like "God, guns, lipstick" and "Read my lipstick - Palin."

A vendor had run out of badges with Mrs Palin's picture and the legend: "Coldest State, Hottest Governor."

"I've never seen anything like it," said G. Edward LeFevre, a local Republican committee member. "The crowd, the enthusiasm, the upbeat feel and the emotion is unprecedented. Sarah Palin is quite a lady."

Then the 44-year-old mother of five appeared, with her husband Todd, also 44, and Mr McCain, 72, alongside her.

The crowd went wild, the screaming and cheering eventually subsiding into a steady cry in unison of: "Sarah, Sarah, Sarah!"

Almost every woman asked about Mrs Palin used the word "real" to describe her.

"We can relate to her," said Lori Ciarrocca, 40. "She's like other moms out there. She's a real person who speaks her mind and tells you how it is."

Tom Bross, 62, a Vietnam veteran who was twice wounded in combat, said that it was not just women she appealed to.

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